rjhbonovox said:
Yes, instead of U2.
I read your post and accept that 'Achtung Baby' and 'Zooropa' are two of U2's best albums, but I think Radiohead are THE band of the 1990's. 'OK Computer' 'The Bends' and 'Kid A' are masterpieces!
And while 'Achtung Baby' was one of the BEST albums of the 1990's (possibly a very close 2nd best) there is no point comparing 'The Bends' to 'Pop' as 'The Bends' wins hands down!
It is undeniable that at the very least 'Pop' is half baked, often sounds quite hollow, [I'm aware of why] and you have to hear live versions of many of the tracks to hear them how you would LIKE to...whereas [if I can be like so many others and try to pass myself off as some sort of music critic by saying something like] 'The Bends' just 'TAKES you places' and the guitar work and vocals are as stratospheric as U2's 'The Unforgettable Fire' and stays that way throughout the record! It's a work of art! I love it.
And it doesn't stop at the ALBUMS! During the sessions for 'The Bends' they recorded so many amazing songs, the 'My Iron Lung' EP (Australian only, i THINK, though widely available on Import) leaves you feeling really disappointed that tracks like 'Permanent Daylight', 'Punchdrunk Lovesick Singalong' and 'Lozenge of Love' (three of their BEST!) never made the final record! See also, 'Killer Cars'. Amazing.
'OK Computer' just stands alone as one of the greatest albums of all TIME, never mind the '90s! It's just as atmospheric as 'The Bends' and just builds on it!! And with 'Paranoid Android' on their, I really don't think anyone can complain! See also, 'Polyethelene Pts. 1+2', 'Pearly*', and 'Meeting in the Aisle'.
To sum this up, my opinion is that Radiohead deserve status as founding member of the 1990's more than U2, as their contribution to that particular decade is far greater in my opinion that U2's, whereas U2 should really be the founding member of the 1980's (plus, going back to another thing someone said, there's really no point saying they made a huge contribution to music in the 1980's to try and justify them being a founding member of the
1990's) as the music they made THEN, compared to the MAIN mainstream...really is groundbreaking! Just listen to 'Boy', 'The Unforgettable Fire', and 'The Joshua Tree' (for the millionth time, I'm sure
) and it just blows everything else from that time to smithereens! I mean, what the HELL is
Madonna doing as the founding member of the 1980's?
In short conclusion, in my opinion Radiohead's contribution to music in the 1990's was far greater, and far more influential than U2's...! Plus, as it's a UK music hall of fame, surely it wouldn't be TOO much to ask for British acts to be the 'founding' members...!